Jose Mourinho experiment only asks more midfield questions of Trent
Trent Alexander-Arnold faces a decisive season when it comes to his Real Madrid future.
His debut campaign was injury-hit and underwhelming, and he struggled to make an impact in a dysfunctional, underperforming team.
There were flashes – a few trademark sexy pinged balls out to Kylian Mbappe – but he didn’t cut through opposition backlines anywhere near as routinely as he did in his Liverpool pomp.
The appointment of Jose Mourinho, followed by the signing of Denzel Dumfries, was enough to make you gulp. The Netherlands international looks far closer to the sort of defensively sound full-back Mourinho has traditionally favoured. But perhaps there is still a way in for Alexander-Arnold.
A few weeks ago, The Athletic published an eyebrow-raising report claiming that Mourinho was “keen” to use Alexander-Arnold in midfield, although “it is not the main plan”.
What better stage than the high-profile, low-jeopardy setting of the Champions League league phase, against the reigning champions of Italy?
These shoehorned-in showdowns between European royalty have a distinctly wallpaper feel to them: somewhere between a sleepy July friendly in Florida and the white-hot intensity these same sides would bring to a knockout tie.
Luis Enrique probably has the right idea. PSG finished 15th and 11th in the first two editions of the expanded league phase, easing their way into the season before really knuckling down come spring.
Best-case scenario: Mourinho lands upon a formula that can take Los Blancos all the way to No.16 in their own city (albeit across town at the Metropolitano) next June.
Worst case? Madrid suffer a minor setback, the Alexander-Arnold idea quietly dies, and they inevitably make it through to the knockout stages anyway. UEFA’s expanded format has insulated them from genuine risk.
So, how did Alexander-Arnold actually fare? Inevitably, the answer was somewhere between the two extremes.
The opening goal came courtesy of some sloppy work on the ball from a Liverpool academy graduate being handed a major audition in midfield. Fortunately for Alexander-Arnold, that man was his former Reds team-mate Curtis Jones, who disastrously surrendered possession near the edge of his own area. Seconds later Kylian Mbappe took full advantage.
It was a similar story for the hosts’ second mere minutes later. Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez suffered a mare, disastrously failing to control the ball to allow Federico Valverde to bundle the ball in.
A timely reminder of how exactly the Nerazzurri conspired to be eliminated to Bodo/Glimt last season.
Madrid somehow went into half-time with a comfortable lead despite struggling to put together any sustained possession. Inter had racked up more than 70% of the ball at the Bernabeu, with Thibaut Courtois called into action several times as the visitors found plenty of joy in Madrid’s half.
Their failure to sign Rodri, or any convincing alternative, looks increasingly costly when they remain so incapable of controlling games through midfield. Alexander-Arnold, as if any confirmation was needed, is not that guy.
The second half took much the same shape and Inter deservedly got their foothold when left wing-back Carlos Augusto put the finishing touch to another well-worked move in the 77th minute.
Mourinho had evidently seen enough of his experiment, immediately responding with a double change that included Aurelien Tchouameni on for Alexander-Arnold. In fairness, it looked as though he’d been preparing for that one regardless of the change in scoreline.
Ultimately Madrid saw it out against tough opposition. You wouldn’t think that the Alexander-Arnold experiment was enough of a catastrophe for Mourinho to shelve the idea for good. It’d be interesting to see how it’d work against La Liga cannon fodder, like a Malaga or a Getafe, when Madrid are likely to see more of the ball.
But in this fledgling stage of the campaign, Mourinho’s men don’t exactly look like European champions in waiting. And we’d be amazed to see Alexander-Arnold playing this role against serious opposition in the knockouts.
